The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com
Friday, April 10, 2009 - 5
Another
forgettable
Indigo disc
"They'll never see me behind these shirts!"
fr ca' s best
HBO defies popular
notions of Africa in
its smart new series
By ERIC CHIU
DailyArts Writer
Africa falls into a somewhat
awkward niche in the pop culture
lexicon - it has
graduallybecome
the new Eastern
Europe for films The No.
and television
shows in need of 1 Ladies
a desolate, god- Detective
forsaken setting.
Whether or not Agency
this reputation Sundays at
is wholly mer- 8:00 p.m.
ited, it's inadver- HBO
tently at work in
HBO's "The No. 1
Ladies' Detective Agency," which
takes great pleasure in shifting
expectations about shows set in
contemporary Africa.
Based on the series of nov-
els by British author Alexander
McCall Smith, the show follows
Botswana's only female detec-
tive, Precious Ramotswe (singer
Jill Scott). The show essentially
transplants a basic procedural
format - Precious, like the pro-
tagonists of FOX's "House" and
USA Network's "Psych," is an
expert at solving mysteries - to
an African backdrop. The show's
execution, however, keeps every-
thing fresh.
Scott, who is better known as
a singer than an actress, is excel-
lent as Precious, bringing the
right amounts of humor and grav-
ity to the role. Whether goad-
ing a corrupt insurance agent or
being faced down by a gangster,
it's easy to think of Precious as a
detective whose ambition some-
times exceeds her skills. At the
same time, Scott's relationship
with her secretary Grace Makutsi
(Anika Noni Rose, "Dreamgirls"),
who serves as her proficient - if
socially inept - partner, keeps
the tone especially light, thanks
to the strength of both perfor-
mances.
It's especially rare to find a pro-
gram that manages to establish
its identity so quickly. The show's
Botswanan backdrop is as much of
a character as its cast, and the lei-
surely pace lets all of Botswana's
facets be thoroughly explored.
From the shots of the African
savanna to the booming capital
city of Gaborone (all backed by a
pan-African influenced sound-
track), the show affectionately
wears its cultural and geographic
influences on its sleeve.
Thankfully, "Detective Agency"
doesn't blatantly play off view-
ers' emotions the way some mov-
ies about Africa do. Outside of
some unsubtle visual bits in the
pilot about the political problems
of the region, the show sticks to
focusing on the human drama of
its characters. The show doesn't
gloss over the realities of the coun-
try, though, as plotlines delve into
such subjects as HIV/AIDS and
child abduction. "Detective Agen-
cy," however, doesn't try to pull off
melodrama where it can't, and it's
better because of it.
But the show's mishandling
of its procedural format derails
things slightly. The episodes thus
far have been anchored around the
agency solving cases of the week,
but the action never builds a sense
of weight toward an overarching
storyline. The case inevitably gets
solved, but without any indication
that it'll actually matter by the
next episode. The show ends up
feeling more lightweight than its
pedigree deserves.
Still, solid performances and
the show's undeniable charm
make it hard to nitpick its faults.
Even if "The No. 1 Ladies' Detec-
tive Agency" relies too heavily on a
basic formula, it gets enough right
for a satisfying, if familiar, end
product.
By SARAH CHAVEY
Daily Arts Writer
Time is a funny thing. Most
things get
worse with *
time (like
milk), while I
others get bet-
ter (like wine). Poseidon and
And then there the Bitter Bug
are the anoma- Vanguard
lies - those
few items that
are immune to the effects of time,
staying forever unchanged. Like
Twinkies.
The Indigo Girls are a bit like
Twinkies. They've been around
forever, never unanimouslypopu-
lar but they always have a cult of
fervent followers. The content of
their songs is complicated and
obscured by heavy metaphor, and
the topics of their songs are often
at the center of some kind of con-
troversy. The duo's newest album,
the two-disc Poseidon and the
Bitter Bug, follows this pattern.
It's folksy and sweet, but it's still
full of hidden morals. Poseidon
is about as good as the duo's last
few albums, but not asgreat as the
music the Indigo Girls put out in
their prime.
The first disc features 10
tracks, with Amy Ray and Emily
Sailers backed by a band and sup-
ported by all the usual trappings
a well-polished production stu-
dio can offer. Even so, the Indigo
Girls are known for their live acts
and folksy sounds, and perhaps
it's because of this that Ray and
Sailers include a second disc to
the release; it contains stripped-
down acoustic versions of the
same material found on the first
disc. The acoustic versions of the
songs, itseems, maintains a sound
more consistent with their previ-
ous, less-produced material.
Because Ray and Saliers are
not ones to fix what seems to be
working,theystickto theirsigna-
ture sound: folk music heavy on
acoustic guitar and vocals while
light on keyboard, percussion
and other frills. The Girls' voices
are notable as well; Sailers's soft
falsetto complements the hippie
vibe of the music and Ray's deep-
er voice adds a rough edge to the
tunes. Yet unlike the pure and
simple melodies of their big hits
in the early'90s (like "Galileo" or
"Romeo and Juliet"), this album
feels a bit contrived. An over-
produced and formulaic sound
turns even the best of their lyrics'
Americana imagery to sap.
While the album's sound holds
the disc down, the lyrics carve
out moving stories with artistic
perfection. Three main themes
(Americana, nostalgia and tradi-
tional myths and fables) are used
on the album. They are fashioned
by metaphor and imagery intelli-
gent enough to seize beauty over
melodrama - most of the time.
"Fleet of Hope" champions
the beauty of the human capacity
for hope. Allegorical in nature,
the song begins with the story of
a girl and a fisherman speaking
to one another while they stare
toward an ocean's horizon: "We
will have caught on to some-
thing by the end of the day / but
mostly we think about the one
that got away."
The listener is then taken
through a series of previous
periods of despair but always
comforted by the chorus's quali-
fier: "'Cause the fleet of hope is
so pretty when she's shining in
the port / and the harbor clings
to the jetty / for protection and
Why the Indigo
Girls are like
Twinkies.
support / Out in the choppy
waters the sharks swim and
play /you're all washed up when
Poseidon has his day." Put in
words as poetic as these, listen-
ers can almost forgive the ste-
reotypical emo imagery.
By far the most dramatic and
emotionally charged track on
the album is "True Romantic." It
opens with bare vocals and sparse
guitar chords, building slowly
before exploding into rocking
belts, soaring piano and pounding
kick drums and cymbal crashes.
The track's painful admission of
personal faults gives listeners a
glimpse of the Girls' inner modern
rock goddess. And that goddess
looks a lot like Alanis Morissette.
The duo might have done
better by picking and choosing
between the full and acoustic ver-
sions of the album, as some songs
work well backed by the band but
falter in their acoustic counter-
parts, and vice-versa. The album
continues the Indigo Girls' trend
of turning out mildly disappoint-
ing efforts - something fans
have come to expect as the past
seven or so albums have fallen
flat compared to 1992's heralded
Rites ofPassage. Poseidon and the
Bitter Bug is full of poetically bril-
liant but melodically mediocre -
and occasionally cloying - folk
music.
N
There is a
that needs to
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Not all crit
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Critics can, i
les like "Au r
and "Enchan
But let's lv
Moments," fo
a classic snob
od drama fro
in wife disco'
Sweet, subtle
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But here's
Don't belie
by the sapp
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ier descripti
whole thing.
i lar melodram;
unmentioned
lasting
By BLAKE GOBLE Maria
Daily Arts Writer kaupung
century
misconception about film criticism abusive
be dispelled right the cour:
to take b
tics are know-it-all hand-he]
ble of loving any- Everlasting student'
obscure, indepen- Mom t and tend
uted foreign films. admit ho
n fact, enjoy mov- At the Sigfrie
revoir les enfants" Michgan and chil
ted" equally. IFC drink an
'ok at "Everlasting Maria ha
ir instance. It's got and over
b-bait pedigree. A fragile little peri- professio
m Sweden, it's the story of a locked- husband
vering herself through photography. a histori
and completely sedated, it should Maria'sc
ally moving stuff. It looks nice, the gle tears
iard and the film really tries. utes? Ple
the kicker: It's boring as hell. In the
've the hype here. Playing perfectly those lit:
y pseudo-snob book, "Everlasting lifetime.
uninvolving melodrama. The ear- posed to
on could more or less sum up the marriage
And there are dozens of other famil- don't hav
atic details in this film that will go But o
1 here. Moment
'Moments' here
Larsson (Maria Heiskanen, "Laita- daughter Maja (played by two actresses, new-
in valot") is in a rut. It's early 20th- comers Callin Ohrvall and Nellie Almgren) is
Sweden, and Maria is married to the an identifiable voice of reason - a progressive
Sigfrid (Mikael Persbandt, "Nu"). Over young woman. Ohrvall is especially luminous
se of several years, Maria secretly yearns - she exudes the confidence of a fascinating,
eautiful images with her once-forgotten intuitive and affected person. And that's being
Id camera. Somewhere out there, an art generous to an otherwise spunky teen. Also,
weeps for Maria. This film is not loving the Swedish way of life might prove interesting
er. There is no hope in it. And those who for the wannabe traveler. Photo plates, seren-
w they feel are met with scorn.
d goes from job to job, abusing his wife
dren with enough time on the side to
id conceive more kids with his wife. Even arty, indie flicks
as seven children, works numerous jobs
several years has countless flings with can be completely
inal photography. Of course, Maria's
objects to her artistic hobby. Yes, it's disastrous.
cal piece, but they could at least make
dismay more convincing. Inserts of sin-
coming down Maria's eye every 20 min-
ase. dipitous picnics and cobbled streets make 1910s
end, the point of the movie is to find Sweden a nice work of antiquity. But they don't
tle moments of pleasure that can last a make up for the rest.
Because that's what pictures are sup- Basically, "Everlasting Moments" goes to
do. Got it. And that totally absolves a show that even arty, indie fare can fail. Granted,
full of abuse and anguish. Groan. You this isn't "Garden State"-pretentious or "Let
e to be a critic to get annoyed by that. the Right One In"-unique. It doesn't have to be.
bvious triteness aside, "Everlasting "Everlasting Moments" is generic and just ...
s" has its ... moments. Maria's oldest forgettable.
* Junior Boys go above and 'Beyond'
By JACK PORTER a chewy, "aw-shucks" center. If
Daily Arts Writer asked to provide an ad hoc pseudo-
genre to describe Begone Dull Care,
It's hard to love the '80s more "intelligent electro pop" would be
than Junior Boys do. From its more than adequate.
austere beeps The record is supposedly
and dollar-store inspired by the experimental films
snares to its of composer and abstract anima-
"new-romantic" Junior tor Norman McLaren. Its accom-
title, Begone panying press release claims the
Dull Care wears Beyond similarity lies in the process of
its retro genre Dull Care meticulous assembly that defines
label proudly. Domino Records both animation and electronic
Fortunately, the music. But why Junior Boys decid-
band has pieced ed to draw this comparison in the
together many of the more appeal- first place is a bit baffling. And
ing fragments from that era to cre- while the album is a blast, its mes-
ate an album sounding like both sages are often cryptic.
something borrowed and some- Opener"Parallel Lines" is a bare-
thing new. knuckled introduction to Begone
The Boys' pretty-boy vocals Dull Care. A beating-heart bass
recall new-wave tunes. The band's synth and aggressive snare hits
funky collaging of clipped percus- rev up the four-on-the-floor num-
sion samples could have come from ber. Here vocalist Jeremy Green-
early techno or industrial music. span half-whispers in a creepy
And its music's keyboard synths and sexy falsetto over clockwork
would have been at home in any beats, giving the song a split
song from the '80s. What results dynamic between boyish charm
is an album with a cold veneer and and mechanical sterility. The lyrics
sound profound yet vague in lines ure it out."
like, "Odds, ends, final amends/It's Lead single "Hazel" takes the
alright to say it /just as long as you Boys' Korg-core pillow-talk to its
don't really think so." peak with a whiplash back-beat
Going for the nostalgic jugu- and bracing synth chords. Its
lar on "Bits and Pieces," the Boys swooning aphorisms are familiar
cobble together a porno-riffic and even trite ("With every kiss
funk groove from blippy Atari- you kill me more"). But the glitchy
sounding samples. It sounds like a breakdown adds another layer
cross between ancient video game to the ballad about a girl that, for
loops and new-wave pop. As the Greenspan, is yet another kind of
puzzle. He's trying to sort through
his own infatuation: "You're over
everything / All the lines are skip-
An albumn full of ping free / The moment interrupts
me / and I can't find my place."
en a In aRurl'lIntroverted, complex and seduc-
1 tive, Begone Dull Care is full of
puZZ "es. paradoxes that happily know how
to get along with each other. Bal-
ancing chilly beats with bashful
title implies, the song's elements vocals, Junior Boys have delivered
are discrete; they're in-sync yet a delightfully conflicted album,
strangely isolated from each other. perfect for chaotic spring weather.
While the lyrics are abstract, they Half the fun, as the lyrics suggest,
fit into the album's central motif is putting the pieces together -
of building and solving puzzles: and the other half is simply bask-
"I see it better when the lights are ing in the glory of a finely tuned
out / Just give a second and I'll fig- dance record.
LOVE DANCE, BOOK
READINGS & THEATER?
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